Down The Yellow Brick Road
by IoIngridWeaver
Summary: One cold, scarred, and hardened mercenery and thief plus one strong, patriotic Avenger multiplied by plots to take over the world set into motion by said mercenery subtracted by old memories that haunt them both divided by a new relationship on his end and a cold and lonely soul on hers equals one chance to maybe save the world, his life, and maybe her soul.
1. Chapter 1

**Title: ****Down The Yellow Brick Road **

**Summary****: Lily Cole is unlike anything or anyone Steve Rogers has ever encountered. An accomplished and infamous mercenary, thief, and soldier of fortune he grows to know her and of her reputation through a series of unfortunate and startling meetings. And although he does not know it they are tied together by one small moment of compassion and dread. Through their interactions and choices Steve comes to discover a side of himself long thought dead as well as the past SHIELD and Nick Fury would rather stay buried. With his own blooming relationship with Sharon Carter on the line and the lives of hundreds in peril Steve must confront the demons of the past if he is to preserve the peace of the present. But when Lily is drawn in as well the selfish and guarded woman must summon an inner strength and courage she never knew she had in order to try and undo some of the wrongs she has brought about. But when it comes down to the finish line will Lily truly be able to face her actions and the inner darkness that has driven her to the point of no return? **

**Playlist****: hall of fame by the script, as long as you love me by Justin Bieber, Demons by Imagine Dragons, and Dream on by Aerosmith. **

"_**Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that."-**__**Martin Luther King, Jr.**_

_**Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or in the darkness of destructive selfishness. -**__**Martin Luther King, Jr.**___

When Lily Cole was a child she had dreams. Dreams of a home and a family and a husband and children who would love her and save her and redeem her. She truly believed that who or what she was did not determine her happiness.

Lily Cole is much older now and much more experienced. While she may not be wiser Lily knows enough about the world to make a place for herself in it. She no longer believes in anything really. There are some things she simply knows and accepts as truth.

_**One life is all we have and we live it as we believe in living it. But to sacrifice what you are and to live without belief, that is a fate more terrible than dying. -**__**Joan of Arc**_

Fact; good may conquer evil once and a while but darkness will always prevail. It does not matter how much people try they always will be cowards and choose the easiest path. Lily knows this. But she is not a coward. No, she acknowledges her follies and weaknesses and made her peace with them a long time ago. She just refuses to even try to be better. She knows who and what she is. And she is fine with living a life of murder and mayhem. After all it is what she is good at.

Fact; the weak die and the strong survive. Lily survived what killed most of her people and family by doing what was necessary to survive. Yes it has left its scars and sure it has made her cold and at times inhumane. But she is still living while her fellows are buried in mass and unmarked graves. She had what it takes. They do not. And she refuses to even feel pity for those who are not even willing to lift a finger and try. She will surely not help anyone who does.

Fact; Lily does things most of the world considers immoral and illegal for a living. But Lily does no care what the world thinks. Long ago she learned a simple lesson. And it is this. When the world turns its back on you, you turn your back on the world. It is as simple as that. So when the world has gone to hell in a hand basket many times over she simply steps back into the shadows and waits. Waits for the storm to pass and for her time to come. All that matters is survival. And Lily is good at that.

Fact: Lily Cole is an in demand mercenary who specializes in many a time. A jack of all trades if you will. Assassinations. Thievery. Selling. Plundering. And simply creating chaos. Lily does not like what she does. She does no delight in bloodshed like many of her compatriots due. Lily simply does what she is good at. And she is good at staining her hands with the blood and livelihood she takes and robs and plunders from. And she does it anyways. So she sticks to what she is good at. Nothing more and nothing less.

Fact; Lily Cole is not beautiful. She is marked too much by what love has thrown at her. Under no reason or rhyme does she even think she is even close to good looking. Her hair that falls to her mid back is not black or brown. It is the color of dirt. Dark dirt. Dirt. Enough said in her opinion. Her eyes are a charming olive green but they are too large for her face and she needs glasses to see when she is tired. She hates contacts so she wears glasses even though they could be used against her when doing her job. She deals with it. Her skin is too pale for her hair color and when it tans it looks funny. She is of medium height and build and is not skinny or well toned. She is thicker than most girls but has muscle. But even without all of this she knows she is not pretty. But nor is she ugly either. She is simply plain and scarred. Beginning in between her eyebrows an old and red looking line begins that ends on the bridge of her nose in a fairly straight line that then abruptly jags to the left and ends an inch below her ear. And all around her neck is a jagged circle that is faint but still easily seen. And both of her wrists are marked by circular scars that were caused by chains that rubbed her skin raw and kept her prisoner until she broke them herself.

Yes Lily Cole is under no illusions about who or what she is. But she also knows that these are her war wounds and she will not be ashamed of them. So she does not hide them but nor does she flaunt them either. If people see them so be it. If not who cares?

Lily Cole keeps to herself and has no friends. If she gets bored she travels or takes up a job. Simple as that. And it is on one of these days that she takes a job to enter into Stark Towers and to complete a simple enough job. To simply take a briefcase that SHIELD has stored there. She does not know what it is nor does she want to. If it is not part of the job to know she does no care.

And so she impersonates an unconscious maid and soon begins her ascent up the various levels and takes to the air ducts to make it up. And much to her shock she thinks this is too easy. Way too easy. She begins to get uneasy and soon her gut instinct is proven right when she jumps into a dark room only for the lights to be thrown on and a hammer (really a HAMMER OF ALL THINGS?) to be thrown right at her.

Amid her musings Lily dodged and weaved and did what she did best. It is only in a moment that will change her life forever when she looks back do things get hairy. Out of the corner of her eyes a circular spinning object comes towards her and hits her side.

She is thrown into the wall and she knows her arm is broken by its bend angle and her entire right hand and fingers are bent backwards. Her head is bleeding and she can taste blood on her tongue. Looking up her eyes meet that of a man dressed like the stupid banner of this idiotic country full of cowardice.

He has the bluest eyes she has ever seen. And she sees his widen when after what seems like an eternity her skin begins to knit together and her bones align themselves and she spits out the blood pooling in her mouth at his feet.

Their eyes meet again. They are as blue as they were a minute ago and nothing has changed. Except everything has. Lily Cole was never one to believe in such as thing as fate or destiny. But there he is just as he was almost seventy years ago. Looking down at her while she looks up back at him.

_**I don't believe in fate or destiny. I believe in various degrees of hatred, paranoia, and abandonment. However much of that gets heaped upon you doesn't matter - it's only a matter of how much you can take and what it does to you. -**__**Henry Rollins**___

Nothing has changed and everything is the same as it was a moment prior. And yet the world will never be the same.

_**Ships that pass in the night, and speak each other in passing, only a signal shown, and a distant voice in the darkness; So on the ocean of life, we pass and speak one another, only a look and a voice, then darkness again and a silence. -**__**Henry Wadsworth Longfellow**___

_**Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our Light, not our Darkness, that most frightens us. -**__**Marianne Williamson**___


	2. Chapter 2

_Lily Cole was almost fifteen years old when she killed for the first time. It was easier than she thought it would be when she lifted the rock and killed the man who was raping her mother in front of her younger sister and brothers. She remembers standing above the body and looking at the rock. She remembers the blood dripping and staring at her mother's horrified expression. She remembers breathing deep and remembering her duty. She was the eldest and she would always look after her family even if her mother would not. _

_She remembers dragging the body behind the barn and digging a shallow grave and pushing his body into the grave. She remembers spitting on his grave and burying him with nothing to mark his final resting place. She remembers going into the house and dressing her sobbing mother and packing clothes and forcing everyone to eat something. She then remembers going into the woods with her silent mother and crying siblings. She remembers hoping it was enough for them to get away. She remembers knowing they were doomed when voices were heard and shots being fired and soon being surrounded by soldiers._

_She remembers that being the last day she ever felt anything at all except for anger and hate and rage and sorrow. She remembers that day as being the day her dreams of childhood died and the cold cruel reality of the real world came calling. She remembers that day as being the last time she ever thought of her mother as someone to be loved. _

Lily Cole is nursing her wounded pride and feelings of shock and disbelief. The so called Captain America was the same man. The one whom had destroyed the last hope she ever had before she was forced to give up the last of her innocence in order to live.

Closing her eyes tightly she refuses to think about the past. No good can come of it. All that matter is that she got the case and dropped it off and has been paid. She is that much richer and that much more secure. Now all she needs to do it get away from New York City and away from that man and his fellow so called heroes.

Getting on the train to Vermont Lily leans her back against the head rest and tries to sleep. But all she can do is dream; dream nightmares of blood and hatred and broken promises.

_Lily Cole is almost a hundred years old and she has killed more men than she dare count. And with this thought she brings arm up and swings her feet out and as the attacker falls to the ground she slits his throat and feels nothing as he kills in mere seconds. Another one down; another bit's the dust and she feels nothing. _

_Throwing herself into the fray she begins to slice and dice and moves. She is in her element here. This is her business of blood and chaos and ruin. Here she is at home. And it is here she has finally begun to realize she is most alone. She stands out among this crowd and it is here she begins to realize how much she has lost. _

_She does not want to feel this….this….guilt and shame but she does. It has been a long time coming. And it is during these moments she damns that stupid man and his faith and speeches and acts. Even though he left her behind and even though he is blinded by that stupid Sharon Carter and her innocent eyes and love of country and home. Even though he is her complete and utter opposite and even though she has done more to harm him than anyone else recently she has grudgingly acknowledged something in these past bloody hours. _

_He is all she has. Her entire family has been dead for almost seventy years and she has no friends or people or anything that counts as anything. All she has is a fragile truce bond thing with the boy next door and unofficial leader of the Avengers. The past years has shown her that she is capable of feeling something and all she knows is that she feels something for that stupid and gullible man. And she knows that unlike everything else here she has nothing to lose but that. And that makes her the worst threat of them all._

_Clearing a path Lily finally stops to take a breath and push the falling hair out of her eyes. She wonders what she must look like covered in blood and dirt and oil and grease and dust. Cracking her neck and continuing on Lily runs down the passage and comes to an opening that finds her facing the man behind all of this and the one currently commanding his subordinate who is holding a gun to the head of Sharon Carter. _

_She knows that if she does not make a move Carter will be dead and Steve will lose yet another person who he loves. So she moves foreword as fast as she can and tosses her knives away. And as the mastermind behind the plot moves off to the side the underling begins to pull the trigger to the gun that will blast Carter's head off her perfect shoulders. _

_Lily activates her power and with one hand grabs the gun and squishes the barrel like it was made of butter and her other hand sinks into the man's chest where she grabs and pulls it out with his heart and as much of his innards that will fit in her hand. The man then pukes up blood as he falls and Carter twists out of his grasp. _

_Carter is staring at her in horror and Lily feels numb as she drops the man's heart and looks down at her hands. Hearing a commotion behind her she feels tears gathering in the corners of her eyes as she meets the stares of the Widow, Hawkeye, Coulson, and a suited up Steve. Sharon runs into his arms but Steve's gaze remains locked on her even as his arms envelop the woman he loves. _

_Lily looks down and sees her blood stained hands and the funnels of it dripping down her left hand. And she looks behind at the bloody footprints she left behind and that lead them here. _

_Squeezing her left hand shut into a fist she breathes and refuses to let the tears fall. _

_She is in her element. Killing and murdering and plundering and chaos. It is all she is good for. And right now in this moment in time as her heart aches and a piece of her dies she wishes more than anything she was good for something else. _


End file.
